Most Historic Pubs in Gangtok With Real Character and Good Stories
Words by
Shraddha Tripathi
The first time I walked into a dimly lit room on MG Marg and heard a retired Gorkha regiment officer narrate the story of how his grandfather helped build the old trade route to Nathu La, I understood why the historic pubs in Gangtok matter far more than the beer they serve. These are living rooms of memory, places where the city's layered past, Tibetan, Nepali, British colonial, and post-merger Indian, pours out in conversation as much as it does in drinks. If you want to know Gangtok beyond the monastery brochures and ropeway selfies, you sit down in one of these old bars Gangtok has quietly kept alive for decades, and you listen.
I have spent the better part of three years drifting through Gangtok's drinking spots, some polished, some crumbling, all of them carrying a version of this city that no guidebook bothers to record. What follows is not a list of "best bars" rated by some algorithm. It is a personal map of places where the walls have stories, where the bartender probably knows your father's name, and where a single evening can rewrite everything you thought you knew about this hill capital. These heritage pubs Gangtok still holds onto are disappearing slowly, replaced by karaoke lounges and craft cocktail spots with exposed brick walls that have never actually witnessed anything historic. The ones I am about to describe are the real thing.
The Old Rum and Whiskey House Near Lal Bazaar
Tucked into a narrow lane just off the main Lal Bazaar road, this place does not have a proper signboard that you can photograph for social media. You find it by asking the third vegetable vendor on the left after the old State Bank of India branch. The room is small, maybe eight tables, with wooden chairs that creak under any weight and a ceiling fan that has been running since the late 1980s. The owner, a man named Dorje Sherpa, took over the establishment from his uncle in 1994, and the uncle had been running it since the early 1970s when this part of Gangtok was one of the few areas where you could get a legal drink without driving to the army cantonment.
What makes this place essential is the whiskey selection. Dorje keeps old bottles of Officer's Choice and Royal Stag behind the counter, but he also has a small stash of imported Scotch that he brings out only for people he trusts. I have seen him pour a 12-year-old single malt for a visiting journalist from Delhi who came in wearing the right kind of humility. The food is basic, boiled eggs, fried peanuts, and a fiery chicken sekuwa that his wife makes in the back kitchen. Order the local tongba if you want the full experience, the fermented millet drink served in a bamboo vessel, which pairs surprisingly well with the salty snacks.
The best time to come is between 4 PM and 7 PM on a weekday. By 8 PM the room fills with local regulars who play cards and discuss politics in a mix of Nepali and Bhutia, and a stranger's presence becomes more conspicuous. Most tourists never find this place because it is not on any app or review platform. It exists entirely through word of mouth, which is exactly how Dorje prefers it.
Local Insider Tip: "Sit at the table nearest the window if you want to overhear the best conversations. The old men who gather there after their evening walk have been meeting in that same spot since before the 1975 merger. They do not mind a quiet listener, but do not pull out your phone. They will stop talking the moment they feel recorded."
I would recommend going on a Wednesday or Thursday, never on a weekend when the card games get loud and the atmosphere shifts from reflective to rowdy. This is one of the classic drinking spots Gangtok has almost forgotten, and that forgetting is part of its beauty.
The Regal Bar and Restaurant on Development Area Road
The Regal has been a fixture on Development Area Road since the mid-1980s, and it carries that era unapologetically. The interior is all dark wood paneling, framed photographs of old Gangtok, and a long bar counter where the polish has been worn away by decades of elbows. It is not trying to be retro. It is retro, because nobody ever bothered to renovate. The current manager, Rajen Pradhan, is the son of the original licensee, and he runs the place with a formality that you rarely see in Gangtok's newer establishments. There is a dress code of sorts, not written anywhere, but you will feel out of place in shorts and flip-flops.
The Regal's claim to historical significance is its role as a meeting point during the political transitions of the 1980s and 1990s. The GNLF movement, the agitation for Gorkhaland, the various negotiations with the state government, many of the informal conversations that shaped those events happened in rooms like this one. Rajen's father kept a guest register for years, and while the early pages have been lost, the ones from the late 1980s onward still exist in a drawer behind the bar. Rajen showed it to me once, pointing out names of people who later became MLAs, ministers, and in at least one case, a person who disappeared under circumstances nobody in Gangtok discusses openly.
Order the house special rum punch, which is stronger than it tastes, or a straightforward Kingfisher beer served in a bottle that is always properly cold. The food menu leans toward classic North Indian and Nepali thalis, and the chicken curry here is genuinely good, rich with local spices and served with rice that is never overcooked. Come for lunch on a Saturday when the thali is freshest, or for a quiet drink on a Tuesday evening when the bar is nearly empty and Rajen himself tends the counter.
Local Insider Tip: "Ask Rajen about the photograph behind the bar, the one with the group of men standing in front of the old Secretariat building. He will tell you who each person is, and the story will take at least twenty minutes. Bring patience and maybe order a second drink. That photograph is the reason this place matters."
The Regal is not the kind of place that appears on "top bars in Gangtok" lists, and that is precisely why it deserves your time. It is one of the heritage pubs Gangtok has kept alive through sheer inertia and family pride, and every visit feels like stepping into a room where history paused for a drink.
The Officers' Club Near Tibet Road
This is not technically a pub, and it is certainly not open to the general public, but no account of historic drinking spots in Gangtok is complete without mentioning the Officers' Club. Located on a quiet stretch near Tibet Road, behind a gate that is manned by a security guard who will not let you in without a membership card or a personal invitation from a member, the club has been the social hub for Gangtok's military and civil service elite since the 1960s. I gained access through a friend whose father served in the Indian Army's Eastern Command, and what I found inside was less a bar and more a time capsule.
The main hall has a proper wooden bar, leather armchairs, and walls covered with photographs from various army expeditions, including several from the 1962 Sino-Indian War. There is a billiards table that has been in continuous use for over forty years, and the cue sticks are so worn that they feel like extensions of your own hand. The drinks are standard, rum, whiskey, beer, and the occasional gin and tonic, but the prices are subsidized, which means you pay roughly half of what you would at any commercial establishment in Gangtok.
What struck me most was the silence. In a city where every commercial space is getting louder, the Officers' Club maintains a hush that feels almost sacred. Conversations happen in low voices. The clink of glasses is the loudest sound. The members here include retired brigadiers, former chief secretaries, and a few elderly Tibetan refugees who were given honorary membership decades ago for their role in intelligence operations during the Cold War era. If you ever get the chance to visit, go on a Friday evening when the weekly gathering happens. You will hear stories that no book about Gangtok has ever captured.
Local Insider Tip: "If you are invited, do not ask about the room at the back of the main hall. It is not off-limits exactly, but it is understood that members do not discuss what happens there. Respect that boundary and you will be welcomed back. Violate it and your friend's membership may be reviewed."
The Officers' Club is the most exclusive of the old bars Gangtok contains, and its inaccessibility is part of its character. It represents a version of Gangtok that exists behind gates and guest lists, a version shaped by military discipline and bureaucratic hierarchy. You may never get inside, but knowing it exists changes how you understand the city.
The Denzong Bar and Restaurant Below MG Marg
Denzong sits on the lower level of a building just below the main MG Marg pedestrian zone, and it has been serving drinks since the early 1990s. The name itself is a clue to its historical orientation, Denzong is the old Tibetan name for Sikkim, meaning "valley of rice," and the bar's interior is decorated with thangka-style paintings, old maps of the kingdom, and black-and-white photographs of Gangtok before the 1975 merger with India. The owner, a Sikkimese man of Tibetan descent named Lobsang Tsering, opened the place specifically to create a space that honored the pre-merger identity of the region.
The atmosphere is warm and slightly cluttered, with bookshelves full of old Sikkimese history volumes that customers are encouraged to browse. The drink menu is straightforward, local beer, Indian whiskey, and a surprisingly good selection of fruit wines made from Sikkimese strawberries and guavas. Order the strawberry wine if it is available, it comes in small bottles and tastes nothing like the mass-produced fruit wines you find elsewhere in India. The food is heavy on Tibetan and Nepali dishes, and the thenthuk here is among the best I have had in Gangtok, rich broth, hand-pulled noodles, and generous portions of mutton.
The best time to visit is late afternoon, around 3 PM to 5 PM, when the light comes through the front windows at an angle that makes the old photographs on the walls look almost alive. By evening the place fills up with college students and young professionals, and the atmosphere shifts from contemplative to social. Most tourists walk right past Denzong because the entrance is down a short flight of stairs that is easy to miss if you are not looking for it.
Local Insider Tip: "Lobsang keeps a handwritten journal behind the bar where he writes notes about the history of each photograph on the wall. If you show genuine interest, he will bring it out and read entries to you. Ask about the photograph of the old palace, the one that was demolished in the 1950s. His account of what stood there and why it was torn down is more honest than anything in the official records."
Denzong is one of the historic pubs in Gangtok that actively preserves memory rather than passively inheriting it. Lobsang's intentionality makes it a place of education as much as refreshment, and every visit leaves you knowing something about Gangtok that you did not know before.
The Mayfair Arcade Bar on the Hotel Premises
The Mayfair Hotel on the main road has been one of Gangtok's most prominent hospitality addresses since the 1970s, and its bar, located on the ground floor of the arcade, has served as a semi-public drinking space for decades. While the hotel itself has undergone several renovations, the bar has retained much of its original character, dark wood, brass fixtures, and a sense of formality that makes you sit up straighter when you walk in. The bartenders here are professionals in the truest sense, they know how to make a proper Old Fashioned, which is a rarity in a city where most bars treat cocktails as an afterthought.
The historical significance of the Mayfair bar lies in its clientele. During the 1970s and 1980s, it was the preferred drinking spot for visiting diplomats, government officials, and the occasional foreign journalist covering the political situation in Sikkim. The Chogyal's courtiers used to drink here in the years before the monarchy was abolished, and several of the older staff members still remember serving Palden Thondup Namgyal's personal secretary. The bar does not advertise this history, but it lives in the institutional memory of the staff and in the framed photographs that line the corridor leading to the restrooms.
Order a gin and tonic with the house gin, or if you are feeling adventurous, ask for the Mayfair Special, a whiskey-based cocktail that the head bartender has been making the same way for over twenty years. The food is hotel-standard North Indian and Continental, reliable but not exceptional. Come on a Sunday evening when the bar is quiet and the staff has time to talk. The head bartender, whose name is Biren, has worked here since 1991 and can tell you stories about Gangtok's transformation that would fill a book.
Local Insider Tip: "Sit at the far end of the bar, not in the lounge section. Biren works that end on most evenings, and if you order a second drink without rushing, he will start talking about the old days. He once told me about a night in 1975 when a group of politicians came in after the merger vote and drank in complete silence for three hours. He said it was the saddest night he ever worked."
The Mayfair Arcade Bar is the most polished of the heritage pubs Gangtok offers, and its connection to the city's political elite gives it a gravity that the more casual spots lack. It is a place where history was not just observed but made, and the bar stools have absorbed more secrets than most filing cabinets.
The Local Hangout Near Deorali, the Old Rum Shop
Down in the Deorali area, below the main town, there is a small establishment that most people in Gangtok simply call "the rum shop." It has no official name that I have ever been able to confirm, and it occupies the ground floor of a residential building on a road that Google Maps does not fully cover. I found it by following a group of laborers who were walking home from a construction site near the Deorali market, and what I discovered was one of the most authentic classic drinking spots Gangtok has to offer.
The room is bare concrete, plastic chairs, a single tube light, and a counter behind which the owner, a Nepali man in his sixties whose name I learned only as "Kaka," keeps bottles of Old Monk rum, Hercules rum, and a few local brands that I have never seen anywhere else. There is no food menu. There is no music. There is rum, there are peanuts, and there is conversation. The clientele is almost entirely local, daily wage workers, auto-rickshaw drivers, and a few retired men who have been coming here for decades. The prices are the lowest I have encountered in Gangtok, a peg of Old Monk costs less than half of what you would pay at any hotel bar.
What makes this place historically significant is its continuity. Kaka told me that the shop has been in the same location since the late 1970s, and that his father ran it before him. The building itself is older, dating to the 1960s, and the shop has survived every political and economic shift that Gangtok has undergone. It was here during the GNLF agitation, during the 1980s unrest, during the 2000s tourism boom, and it is still here now, serving rum at prices that have barely changed in fifteen years. The walls are bare except for a calendar from 2003 that nobody has taken down.
Local Insider Tip: "Go on a weekday evening around 5 PM, not later. After 7 PM the crowd shifts to a rougher demographic and the atmosphere can become tense if you are visibly an outsider. Bring exact change, Kaka does not appreciate large bills, and do not ask for a receipt because there is no such thing here. This is a cash-and-carry operation in the most literal sense."
This unnamed rum shop in Deorali is the rawest expression of Gangtok's drinking culture, unmediated by tourism, unbothered by aesthetics, and utterly real. It is not comfortable, and it is not for everyone, but it is one of the most honest places I have ever had a drink in this city.
The Dragon Bar at the Hotel Golden Crest
The Hotel Golden Crest has been a mid-range accommodation option on the main Gangtok to Ranipool road since the late 1980s, and its Dragon Bar has developed a loyal following among both locals and long-term visitors to the city. The bar is decorated in a style that can only be described as "Sikkimese-Chinese fusion," red lanterns, dragon motifs on the walls, and a jukebox that still plays cassettes from the 1990s. The owner, a Sikkimese man of Chinese descent named Wong, is a third-generation Gangtok resident whose grandfather came to Sikkim as a trader in the 1930s and never left.
The Dragon Bar's historical importance lies in its connection to Gangtok's small but significant Chinese community, which has been part of the city's commercial life since the days when trade with Tibet was conducted through the Nathu La pass. Wong's family ran a general store in the old Chinese quarter of Gangtok, a neighborhood that has largely disappeared due to urban redevelopment, and the bar is in some ways a memorial to that lost community. Wong keeps a collection of old Chinese Sikkimese artifacts behind the glass counter, including coins, photographs, and a set of mahjong tiles that he says belonged to his grandfather.
Order the house special, a rum and cola with a splash of lime that Wong makes with a specific ratio he refuses to deviate from, or try the local craft beer if they have it in stock. The food menu is Chinese, and the chowmein here is genuinely good, made with a recipe that Wong says has been in his family for three generations. The best time to visit is on a Friday or Saturday evening when the bar fills up with a mix of locals and hotel guests, and the jukebox plays old Hindi and Cantonese songs in alternating sets.
Local Insider Tip: "Ask Wong about the mahjong tiles. He will bring them out and let you hold them if he likes you, which he usually does if you are respectful and genuinely curious. Each tile has a story connected to a specific family in Gangtok's old Chinese quarter, and Wong is one of the last people who remembers all of them. He has been trying to get the Sikkim state government to establish a small museum dedicated to the Chinese Sikkimese community, but so far no one has taken him seriously."
The Dragon Bar is one of the historic pubs in Gangtok that represents a community most people do not associate with Sikkim. Wong's presence and his family's history are reminders that Gangtok has always been a crossroads, and that the city's identity is far more layered than the standard Buddhist-Tourist-Hill Station narrative suggests.
The Rooftop at the Nearby Spot Close to MG Marg
There is a rooftop drinking spot near MG Marg that has been operating in various forms since the early 2000s, and while it is not as old as some of the other places on this list, it has earned its place among the classic drinking spots Gangtok offers because of its role in the city's social evolution. Located on the top floor of a commercial building just off the main pedestrian street, the rooftop offers a view of the Kanchenjunga range on clear days and a panoramic sweep of Gangtok's rooftops that is unmatched by any other public drinking space in the city.
The current iteration of this rooftop is managed by a young entrepreneur named Saurav, who took over the space from a previous operator in 2018 and has maintained much of the original character while adding a few modern touches. The seating is a mix of wooden benches and low tables, the lighting is string lights and candles, and the music is a curated playlist that leans toward classic rock and old Bollywood. The drink menu is standard for Gangtok, beer, rum, whiskey, and a few cocktails, but the real draw is the atmosphere. On a clear evening, sitting on that rooftop with a cold beer and the mountains turning gold in the sunset, you understand why people fall in love with this city and never leave.
The historical significance of this rooftop is more social than political. It was one of the first spaces in Gangtok where young people from different communities, Nepali, Bhutia, Lepcha, Marwari, and Tibetan, began mingling openly in a casual setting. Before places like this existed, social life in Gangtok was largely segregated by community, and cross-cultural friendships were the exception rather than the rule. Saurav told me that his predecessor used to say the rooftop "broke the invisible walls of Gangtok," and while that might sound like an exaggeration, I have heard similar sentiments from enough longtime residents to believe there is truth in it.
Local Insider Tip: "Come on a clear day in October or November, not during the monsoon when the clouds block everything. Arrive by 4 PM to get a seat with the best view, and stay until after sunset. The light at 5:30 PM in autumn is something you will remember for years. Also, do not wear heavy shoes, the rooftop floor is uneven in places and heels are a disaster waiting to happen."
This rooftop near MG Marg may not have the decades of history that the other heritage pubs Gangtok contains possess, but it represents a different kind of history, the history of a city learning to open up, to mix, to become something more than the sum of its separate communities. That is worth a drink, and the view does not hurt either.
When to Go and What to Know
Gangtok's drinking culture operates on its own rhythm, and understanding that rhythm will make your experience significantly better. Most of the older establishments close by 9 PM or 10 PM, and the city goes quiet early compared to other Indian hill stations. If you are planning a night out, start by 4 PM and work your way through the afternoon into the evening. Weekdays are generally better than weekends for the more atmospheric spots, because weekends bring louder crowds and a party energy that can overwhelm the quieter character of these places.
Alcohol is legal and widely available in Sikkim, and the state has some of the lowest liquor taxes in India, which means drinks are cheaper here than in most other parts of the country. However, public drunkenness is frowned upon, and the police do occasionally check for it, especially near tourist areas. Dress respectfully, especially at the more traditional establishments, and be aware that many of these places are small and intimate. Loud behavior that might be acceptable in a Delhi or Mumbai bar will feel deeply out of place in a Gangtok heritage pub.
The best months for visiting these spots are October through December and March through May, when the weather is clear and the mountain views are at their best. The monsoon season, June through September, brings heavy rain that can make the narrower roads and lanes difficult to navigate, and some of the smaller establishments reduce their hours or close entirely during the worst weather.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Gangtok expensive to visit? Give a realistic daily budget breakdown for mid-tier travelers.
A mid-tier traveler in Gangtok should budget between ₹2,500 and ₹4,000 per day, covering a decent hotel room (₹1,200 to ₹2,000), meals at local restaurants (₹500 to ₹800), local transport by shared taxi or auto (₹200 to ₹400), and entry fees or miscellaneous expenses (₹300 to ₹500). Alcohol is relatively cheap compared to other Indian states due to low Sikkim liquor taxes, so a beer at a local bar might cost ₹100 to ₹180. Staying in a heritage hotel or eating at upscale restaurants can push the daily budget to ₹5,000 or more.
What is the one must-try local specialty food or drink that Gangtok is famous for?
Tongba is the drink most closely associated with Gangtok and Sikkim. It is a fermented millet beverage served in a bamboo vessel called a tongba, where hot water is poured over the millet and sipped through a bamboo straw. The flavor is mildly sour, slightly alcoholic, and deeply warming, which makes it perfect for Gangtok's cool climate. It is traditionally a Limbu community drink but has become a staple across Sikkim's communities and is available at most local bars and restaurants in Gangtok.
How easy is it to find pure vegetarian, vegan, or plant-based dining options in Gangtok?
Vegetarian options are widely available in Gangtok, as a significant portion of the local population follows vegetarian diets for cultural and religious reasons. Most restaurants, from roadside dhabas to hotel dining rooms, serve dal, rice, sabzi, and roti as standard offerings. Fully vegan options are harder to find, as ghee and curd are used extensively in local cooking, but you can request dishes without dairy at most places and they will accommodate you. Dedicated vegan restaurants are rare, but a few cafes near MG Marg and the Development Area now offer plant-based menus.
Is the tap water in Gangtok to drink, or should travelers strictly rely on filtered water options?
Tap water in Gangtok is not considered safe for direct consumption by most travelers. The municipal supply comes from mountain streams and is treated, but aging pipes in many parts of the city can introduce contaminants. Most hotels and restaurants provide filtered or RO-treated water, and bottled water is available everywhere for ₹20 to ₹30 per liter. Carrying a reusable bottle and refilling it at your hotel's filtered water station is the most practical and environmentally responsible approach.
Are there any specific dress codes or cultural etiquettes to keep in mind when visiting local spots in Gangtok?
Gangtok is culturally conservative compared to metropolitan Indian cities, and modest dress is appreciated, especially at monasteries, temples, and traditional establishments. When visiting the older heritage pubs and local bars, avoid overly casual attire like shorts and tank tops, as it can be seen as disrespectful in spaces that value formality. Remove shoes before entering any space that has a Buddhist altar or prayer flags, and always ask permission before photographing people or religious objects. When offered tongba or rakshi at a local gathering, accepting at least a small sip is considered polite, even if you do not drink alcohol regularly.
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